3. Lilah
LILAH
T he scent of beer, fried food, and something sweet—maybe caramelized onions from the kitchen—wraps around me as I push open the heavy wooden door of The Rail Yard.
Normally, it’s comforting in a way that feels like home.
Tonight, the sights and sounds around me barely register. My legs feel like lead, and my body is running on fumes as my mind replays the moment I walked in on Devon. My hands shake as I bury them in my jacket pockets, not to ward off the chill but to keep my emotions in check.
Any second, I’m going to crumble.
I scan the crowd inside. It’s not a surprise to find the place packed. Game nights are always like this. All the diehard fans want to celebrate with the team.
For just a moment, my heart clenches with the fear that he won’t be here.
What will I do then?
Even though I’ve been operating on autopilot, I need to find Steele. When my world is falling apart, he’s the only one able to comfort me .
It never crossed my mind that I might not be able to find him.
Or that he might be otherwise engaged. That thought settles at the bottom of my belly like a heavy stone. It’s enough to have bile rising in my throat.
I pause as my gaze lands on a few of his teammates.
The first is Laiken, the Railers’ goalie.
He’s older, probably around thirty-three or thirty-four.
He’s handsome in a gruff way, and quiet.
I’ve always found the scruff on his face attractive.
He’s the kind of guy who likes to keep to himself.
It’s actually a surprise that he’s here since he has a young daughter who’s the focus of his life.
If that doesn’t melt your heart, then you’re made of stone.
Then there’s River Thompson. He’s blond, blue-eyed, and muscular.
We didn’t attend the same college, but his twin sister is married to Maverick McKinnon, one of Steele’s former college teammates from Western University.
River’s deep in conversation with Knox McNichols as a handful of women vie for their attention.
No surprise there.
I can only imagine that both of their apartments are a revolving door of females.
Oliver—“the big O” as he’s known by the Railers fans—Van Doren and Jaxon Wilder have their heads bent together as they laugh. A few groupies hang on their arms.
Just when I consider turning around and walking out of the bar, I catch sight of Steele. There’s a frown on his face as he stares down at his phone. Laiken claps him on the shoulder and points in my direction. Steele’s head snaps up before swiveling toward me.
As soon as our gazes collide, everything inside me loosens.
Relief flashes across his face before he’s moving, cutting a direct path through the crowd. By the time I manage another shuddering breath, he’s standing in front of me .
The jumble in my brain melts away as I stare up at him, my heart hammering against my ribs, my throat tight with pent-up emotion.
In silence, Steele scans my face. I can only imagine what a mess I am after crying for hours. There is so much tension in my shoulders that the weight of it presses down on me. It’s a wonder I don’t buckle under the intense pressure.
Even though a muscle in his jaw twitches, he doesn’t ask any questions or push for answers.
Instead, he reaches out, his hands landing gently but firmly on my arms. That’s all it takes to ground me in the here and now.
His warmth seeps through my jacket and into my skin.
It’s both solid and steady, like an anchor that keeps me from drifting away.
“Lilah.”
The sound of my name sliding from his lips is enough to snap the last thread of composure I’ve been clinging to. My eyes burn and my body quakes, the emotion crashing through me as I press my face into the quiet strength of his chest.
He catches me immediately. One arm bands around my back before tugging me closer as the other slides up to cradle my head like I’m a small child. His body is warm, strong, and steady.
I didn’t realize just how much I needed his strength until this moment.
My fingers clutch at the fabric of his shirt as my shoulders shake.
Even now, he doesn’t pelt me with questions.
His grip tightens, holding me close.
For the first time since walking in on Devon and Marissa, the storm inside me settles.
I have no idea how long we stand here wrapped up in each other’s arms.
When I’m finally able to find my voice, it’s scraped raw. “I’m so sorry about missing your game.”
“What happened? I couldn’t focus without you there. I was worried.”
I groan, hating that my drama has affected him. Hockey has always been Steele’s number one priority. The last thing I want to do is interfere with his game.
When I fail to respond, he pulls away just enough to search my eyes with narrowed ones. “Are you going to tell me what happened? Or do I have to drag it out of you? Because we both know I will.”
Honestly, I’d rather not tell Steele what occurred. I can already predict how he’s going to react. He never liked Devon.
Oh, Steele has always been polite, but after all these years, I know him well enough to realize when he’s faking it.
Not that I ever mentioned it, but Devon constantly complained Steele and I spent too much time together.
He’d tell me that men and women could never be just friends.
I always disagreed, insisting that Steele was more like a brother than anything else, even though I knew deep down it was a lie.
In all the years I’ve known Steele, I have never once thought of him as a sibling.
His fingers slip beneath my chin, drawing me back to the present. “Tell me what happened.”
His voice dips as a hard edge fills it. The deep baritone is enough to send a shiver racing down my spine before settling in my core. I quickly stomp it out.
As tempting as it is to underplay the situation, the last thing I’m going to do is cover for that cheating sack of shit.
“I walked in on Devon screwing Marissa in his office.” A slight tremor runs through me as I add, “On his desk, if you want to get specific.”
I still can’t believe how he’d been fucking her. The image is burned into my mind, and I can’t stop replaying it, no matter how hard I try.
The total abandonment on his face .
Steele stiffens. His grip tightens, and his jaw locks for a beat before he exhales sharply through his nose. “Are you serious?”
“And that’s not even the most brutal part,” I whisper, desperate to get it all out.
“What could possibly make it worse?”
“She’s pregnant.”
It’s almost comical the way his eyes widen. Any moment now, they’re going to fall out and roll around on the floor.
He drags me closer before dropping a kiss on the crown of my head. “I’m so sorry, Lilah. You didn’t deserve that. Any of it. I know how much you cared about him.”
As soon as the words leave his lips, I realize how wrong they are. It’s true, I did care about Devon, but there’d been a lot of cracks in our relationship I hadn’t wanted to share.
“Thanks. I’m sure that was painful for you to say.”
He snorts as a slight smile lifts his lips. “We both know he was never good enough for you. I’ve been telling you that from day one.”
“True. But you say that about every guy I introduce you to.”
“And I stand one hundred percent behind every single instance. None of them have ever been good enough.” There’s a pause. “So, what happens now? I mean, you’re not going to continue working for him, are you?”
I can almost see the way Steele is gearing up for a fight.
“Nope, I quit.”
“Thank fuck. There was no damn way I was going to let you go back.”
“It would probably be more accurate to say Devon asked that I not return.”
“That spineless son of a bitch,” he growls.
“Pretty much.”
“So, where are you going to stay?”
Emotion wells inside me as I shake my head. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so lost or alone in my life. “I don’t know. I haven’t gotten that far yet. I’m sure I could stay with Rina or maybe Ev?—”
“No way. You’ll stay with me,” he says, cutting me off. “End of discussion.”
I shake my head, already protesting, ready to tell him that I’ll figure it out on my own. He doesn’t need to swoop in and save me.
“No arguing, lucky charm.” His voice is steady and unwavering. “It’s already a done deal.”
His nickname for me hits me in the feels.
It’s the exact balm I need after the past couple hours.
With a tilt of my chin, I search his eyes. “I don’t want to get in your way.”
He snorts. “Give me a break. My place is huge. You said so yourself when you helped pick it out. It’s the perfect spot for you to sort through everything.”
There’s not a shred of doubt in his expression.
I swallow hard as my stomach twists. My emotions are stretched so tight, I don’t know what to do with them anymore.
Even though I should tell him no, my resistance is already crumbling. “Are you sure? I don’t know how long it’ll take for me to find another job or a place to live.”
“There’s no pressure. Take as long as you need.” He reaches for my hand and laces our fingers together before tugging me in just enough to let me know this isn’t an offer.
It’s a decision.
One that’s already been made.
I hate to admit just how comforting it is to know that, no matter what happens in life, Steele will always be my soft place to land.